driftfleet | (no subject)

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(no subject)

Who: Charles Xavier + You
Broadcast: Video
Action: SS Heron
When: Right now!

[ The video starts with Charles sitting on his wheelchair, his hands neatly folded on his lap. He rubs faint circles on his legs for a few seconds, the only real sign of tension. ]

Hello. My names is Charles Xavier. I am a geneticist graduated from Oxford. I -- [ ran ] -- run a school in Westchester for the Gifted. Mutants. People with abilities. My focus is the training and control of abilities we do not always fully understand, abilities that are gifts but can often run amok.

[ He pauses, catching his second wind before continuing on, poised. ]

I am also a telepath with a full set of abilities in aiding the mind and extremely . . . proficient. I do not read minds without permission, because honestly, I really don't care.

[ Charles pauses again, wondering if he should say more and dismisses it. People can ask him if they need details - which they will. ]

If anyone would like to make use of my abilities and skills, they are certainly most welcome to. Confidentiality, of course, is key and you need not make anything public if you do not wish to. If you have any questions for me, the floor is open for you.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ she comes up! ]

Hi. Thanks for having me over.

Edited 2016-05-20 01:53 (UTC)

Of course. Thank you for coming over. It still takes me some time to travel between ships.

[ He heads towards the kitchen. ]

They can put in new rooms at the drop of a hat but somehow they haven't thought to accommodate you. It's almost unbelievable, really.

[ He waves it off. ]

It's not usually the first thing that comes to mind.

You're from before the ADA, but still.

Anyway, I'm not a mutant, to clear things up.

The ADA?

[ He glances at her. ] That's not surprising. I've met most of the mutants here and they seem to know me rather well.

But powers, whether they come from our biology or somewhere else are still something that we need to learn to control at times.

It's an American law that requires accessibility measures to be taken in public places. It's from 1990 or something.

And I do okay with control. It's been a little uneven here, because my power source hasn't been consistent.

Fascinating. Of course, certain abilities would need power sources of some kind, depending on the output . . .

[ But he catches himself rambling. ] What is it?

The sun. A yellow sun, to be precise. The one Earth has is kind of the sweet spot. The one here is too far away, so I have some access to my powers, but it's weakened.

There are no lights that synthesize the same spectrum?

[ Though that's not a priority in space. ]

You said powers. How many do you have?

Winn's working on it, but no luck yet.

And I don't think I've ever sat down and counted them. Flight, invulnerability, strength, speed, hearing, x-ray vision, heat vision, freeze breath... just strong breath in general, and also one time I sucked up all this poison gas in a room and dissipated it into the atmosphere.

[ He takes it in stride, though inwardly, he's impressed. Watching someone work with such a large variety of powers . . . their control would have to be perfect. Impeccable. ]

With a power list like that . . . I think it's safe to assume you're not genetically human?

Correct. I'm Kryptonian. An alien.

What happens if there is no sun? Would your powers not work?

Right. I wouldn't be hurt, per se, but I would just be like an average human. Colds and everything.

[ They finally make it to the kitchen. Charles takes a few seconds to properly grab the mugs and go to the dispenser. ]

So having that many abilities and needing a power source can be a drawback.

Definitely.

Krypton, where I'm from, had a dying sun, which was red. We weren't powered there. But then I was sent to Earth, specifically because my mother knew I'd have them there.

That must make it difficult to adjust.

It was when I was 13. But I've mostly figured it out now.

Still, being alone on a strange planet . . .

[ Charles shakes his head as he gets some tea for himself. ] In a way, mutants are less alone now. We have that community.

[ Messed up as it is. ]

It's a little stranger than that.

My mother knew that Krypton didn't have long. My parents and my aunt and uncle decided to send my infant cousin and I away. I was meant to protect him. However, I got caught up in a part of space called the Phantom Zone, and I stayed there for 20 years, asleep and unchanging. Meanwhile, Kal-El made it to Earth on schedule and grew up without me, so when I got there, I was 13, and he was in his 20s.

[ Er. That's definitely . . . new. ]

It sounds like that show Hank is always watching.

That I don't doubt.

By the time I made it to Earth, Kal-El found a great foster family for me to stay with. The transition was... strange. We didn't have birds on Krypton, for example.

[ He nods. ]

I rather enjoy this aspect of the Fleet, being able to visit new worlds.

I like it, too, though the culinary horizons could be expanded...